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Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Anyone ride Amtrak overnight?
3 of us might be taking Amtrak to Florida in a few months. They only have rooms that sleep 2, so we would buy 1 room, then the 3rd person would have the coach seat. But, can all 3 of us come & go and hang out in the room during the day? I have never ridden Amtrak before so this may be a very stupid question
Thanks
Re: Anyone ride Amtrak overnight?
I have done both (ridden overnight in a coach seat and in a room) and DEFINITELY get a room for all 3 of you or 2 rooms, however you want to do it. I did the same trip you might be doing, from Penn Station to Orlando, and it was so awful going down in the coach seats that we upgraded to a small room for the ride home when we got to Florida. Sleeping in the coach seat overnight was probably one of my worst traveling experiences ever. I'm not a prissy sleeper, I have no problem with tents or cars or the floor or anything like that, but there was no way I could sleep more than 15 minutes at a time. Also, the bathrooms were gross in the coach section, so at least in the rooms you get your own toilet. Plus, some people would listen to music or a movie without headphones, so there was never any total quiet. I hope I didn't ruin your idea of the trip for you, I'm just letting you know my experience. If you really want to take the train, get a room or rooms. Let's just say that trip cured 85% of my flying phobia because I never want to do the train again.
Pipe down, you had your chance!
The basic sleeper that sleeps two only has two seats and enough leg room for the two people in it. The berths literally take up every inch of the basic sleeper room when they are out. There would never be enough room for 3 during the day. Coach is OK for short trips and roomier than a plane seat, but I don't think your idea would work for this trip. If I remember correctly, the Porters knew who belonged in the sleeper sections and who did not since they bring drinks, papers, and other things to those passengers. They have at least one Porter per car and he knew me by name and face within the first hour because he checked on me regularly. The dining car and sightseeing car divide the sleepers and coach sections.
It's been a while since I did this, but I can't imagine it changing enough to let people without sleeper tickets into sleeper cars since they have their own shared baths with showers that coach doesn't have access to for use and those people pay for those amenities. This is for the smallest ones. The larger ones that sleep four are furthest from coach and those have private baths. You could hang out with that person in the cars that the coach passengers are allowed in, but there is probably not a way for them to gain access to the sleeper area without buying the ticket. The halls are also a very tight fit making someone who doesn't belong stand out even more.
Never done it nor would I. I had a friend who just went from NY to Chicago on Amtrak and hated it. It's uncomfortable and a big time waster.
Assuming you are leaving out of NJ that is a 20hr trip to FL ( Orlando?). Dh and I just did a price comparison ( Amtrak vs kayak (airfare) and flying is actually cheaper. Personally, I'd fly ( I know Phil to Mia is 3.5hrs), save time, money and a sleepless night for at least one person.
Kristi and Kerry June 21,2008
The berth that I was in was so uncomfortable and hard to get in and out of that I barely slept in it all. I was actually a TA on a Fam trip and most of us were so uncomfortable we spent the night drinking and playing cards in the club car to avoid trying to sleep in the berths. The trains sway big time and many people I was with who never had motion sickness issues were having them on the train. The only Amtrak tickets I ever sold in the business were to Amish people and old people who loved trains.
There's also a lot of possibility for delay since the railroad companies get priority on the tracks stopping the Amtrak trains often. Also, if there's an accident or something on the tracks it will delay you as well.
I've been on coach on the DC->Chicago route overnight several times and found it perfectly comfortable. The seats are similar to first class in a plane, big cushy recliners. The staff comes through in the evening and puts a tag with your final destination over your seat so they know to wake you up at your stop. There is a gentle sway to the train, it feels like it's rocking you to sleep.
That being said, others are right about the on-time record, I've never had a trip on-time at both the pick-up and drop-off locations (at least an hour off, frequently 2-3). The worst was a planned 4-hour trip. The train didn't arrive until 2.5 hours after the scheduled time, and then it took us an extra 10 hours sitting somewhere in Ohio so they could switch staff since there were so many delays. I ended up getting in 14 hours late.
I took the amtrak in college because I was too young to rent a car and the airports were far away and more expensive. Now I drive where possible and fly when it's too long for that.